-=- Ginsu Mage -=-

S1E8: The Greater Good

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“It sound like a lot of trouble to me,” I said. “And I’m not sure I want to buy into it.

A knock at the door interrupted our conversation.

“Enter!” I yelled. A moment later the Grand Vizier walked into the dim room, blinked at the princess then gave us a greasy smile.

“I came to check on the health of our champion,” He said, approaching the small table where Navonne and I sat.

“The reluctant champion is in fine health,” I replied, lifting my glass in a mock salute. “And curious to know if you’ve thought of any other means for me to return home. I’m sure there’s been quite a fuss over my absence by now.”

The Vizier shook his head. “No, the information I gave you was accurate to my knowledge. However, it was never mentioned that you were plucked out of time. You need not worry about a “fuss” over your absence, since you will never be gone for more than a moment or two. When you return, it shall be as if no time had passed. ”

“You’re saying that no matter how long I stay here, I’ll return home the moment I left, just like it was a dream?” I clarified.

“Exactly.”

“Well,” I said, drawing out the word. “That changes everything. If you’re not lying.”

His face flashed with anger that was quickly masked. “I wouldn’t lie to the Champion of Nigos.”

“What about Harry Johnson?” I asked. “Would you lie to him? Because, and no offence intended, where I come from the Grand Vizier is almost always the bad guy scheming to take over the kingdom and marry the princess.”

Shock. Anger. Guilt?

His face flushed with emotion before settling into an impenetrable wooden mask. “I cannot speak for those that hold such a position in your world, but in this world the king is elected. If I wanted to be king, I would simply present myself as a choice for the Lower House the next time a vote of confidence is raised.”

It seems that politics are complicated here. An elected king? How does that even work?

“In that case, my apologies,” I said, nodding my head. “Some stereotypes are hard to break.”

“Your apology is accepted,” Vizier Demandrope said, his voice gruff with irritation. “If you’re feeling well, I’d like some of your time. Princess Miranda, would you mind?”

“Not at all, Vizier Demandrope,” Navon replied with a smile, rising and offering a small curtsey. “I shall retire to my chambers for a small nap before lunch.”

Denamdrope nodded and assumed her chair after the door closed behind her.

I mulled over offering him a drink while he settled, and decided I’d give him the benefit of the doubt. Waving my hand, I caused Navon’s glass to vanish and summoned a clean rocks glass for the grand vizier, then poured him a finger of scotch.

“Liquor?” he asked, sniffing it cautiously before taking a sip. A faint smile of approval crept across his lips.

“Yes,” I replied. “It turns out my mortmain is infested with spiders and I’m drinking to the occasion.”

“Spiders? Wait, you have a mortmain?” he asked, incredulous.

“It seems to be a big deal,” I said, pulling up my status and glancing at it. “I also have a 25lb inventory box, about 40 spells, and an advanced mode for my status. Everything else is completely average though.”

“Can I see your mortmain?” he asked.

“Can I see yours?” I parried, guessing that he had one.

The conflict was evident in his eyes, but curiosity won out. “It’s not a Modus spell so I need to chant,” he said, appearing proud of himself. “

Come forth spirits

And Grant my desire!

Celestias, I Beseech thee

Draw back your Ebon shades!

A strange sigil appeared on the wall in glowing blue lines, and a plain wooden door materialised.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it



Walking over to it, he pulled the door open to reveal a 3x4x6 area stuffed full of oddities. I wanted to root around in his junk, but I figured that it would be bad manners to grope another guy’s goods.

“Very nice,” I said, grasping for a compliment. “You seem to have it filled with all manner of uh, useful items.”

He nodded, a genuine smile on his face. “It has served me well these many years. Not many can learn the spell or have the mana for it.”

I popped open my status and selected Butler’s Pantry, noting that the numbers on my Usage had changed from (0/3600) to (625/3600) and after the door appeared, they changed again to (1125/3600). Hell, if I keep summoning this thing I’ll use up all my… Data? Magic? Whatever.

Maybe Demandrope could answer my questions.

Opening the familiar red door, I watched the grand vizier’s face transform from shock to jealousy to resignation.

“Well, it’s to be expected from a champion, I suppose. It’s not the size, it’s what you keep in it.” He muttered. “May I enter?”

Demandrope walked inside, peering curiously at the canned goods on the shelves. I gave him the fifty cent tour and answered his questions, noticing that he was careful to point but never touch.

“Navon said that you might know what this is,” I said, opening what used to be the breaker box and revealing the small fortune in mana crystals.

He stared for a moment. “It’s a locus. You usually see these in a mana spire, controlling the output for the core. I’m not entirely certain of the function but the runeform reference the elements Air, Earth, Fire, Water, Light, Ice, Lightning, Void, Space, and surprisingly, Spiritual. You also have large crystals of each major philosophy; Abjuration, Conjuration, Evocation, Illusion, Summoning, and Transmutation. Including three Universal and a black Miasma stone of all things.”

“So no idea what it does?”

“It controls mana output and type, and looks very similar to the control boards in the mana spires. Beyond that, I don’t know. I know some talented Enchanters who would love to have a look. They might…”

“Nope, not happening. This was a one time special tour.” I said, hustling him out of my pantry and back to our chairs. Since the Usage cost was only extracted when I summoned the pantry, I didn’t banish it. I had other things inside I wanted to check out, alone.

Demandrope was excited by my mainmort and insisted that I look through my status page for skills, abilities, and spells.

“I have the Logistics III skill, which sucks because I’ve spent decades in that career. The only ability is Babel I, and spells… huh. Looks like I have about 40 of them listed?” I said after he badgered me into looking. The drink was kicking in hard now and I was feeling relaxed.

“It’s disappointing that you don’t have any other skills,” he said, smoothing his thin moustache, “but not surprising considering your, uh, circumstances. The Modus only recognises certain skills and abilities, but if you discover something new it will reward you with experience that can be used to purchase items from the Shop. Bringing new skills or knowledge to the Modus can be very lucrative.”

I recalled the vision I had and nodded. It seemed that I had already received an experience reward for something. I flicked my attention back to the status page and opened the Store tab while the vizier continued to speak.

“Since the Modus only deals in experience, anything you buy from it has to be purchased with experience you’ve earned. It only sells Skills and Abilities, so that’s all you can purchase. Most people only earn enough experience in their lifetime to purchase a few items from the Modus.” He paused for a breath and considered his next words. “I’m not sure what the plans are for your immediate future, so saving your experience is always a wise thing. You can always learn a skill through effort and practice, but once you spend the experience, the upgrade is irreversible.”

I looked through the listings. The Skills appeared to be based on Intelligence and Agility and it seemed like you could get an instant education in a heartbeat. Blacksmith, Cartwright, Guitar, Swordsmanship, etc.

The Abilities were more personal and seemed to involve changes to your physical attributes. Because most seemed to require mana to use, it looked like the were some kind of innate spell or enchantment.

What’s the Auction?” I asked, scrolling through the listings on that tab.

“It’s a feature the Founders included in the Modus for users . It allows you to list anything you have in your inventory for sale or post a request.” He explained. “Because it requires an Inventory, it’s somewhat exclusive. Prices are set by the individual, but the Modus always charges a percentage of the transaction plus a listing fee. And by the way, staring at your Status while talking to someone is considered extremely rude, even by the lowest of commoners.”

“Sorry, not sorry,” I grinned. “It looks like there are a lot of weapons and other sundry items being auctioned. Especially food and drink.”

“Mercenaries and Adventurers use the Auction to replenish themselves out in the field. Anything you sell has to be in your inventory and anything you purchase appears there.”

Huh. That gives an entire new twist to the logistics game.

I closed out the status page and finished off my scotch. “So what brought you to my room today, Grand Vizier? What plans do you have in motion?”

A shadow crossed his face at my words and I wondered if I was pissing off the wrong guy here. Naw. The Grand Vizier is ALWAYS the bad guy, I just need to wait, right?

“I assure you that all my plans are for the greater good of Nigos, Magister Johnson,” he said, rising from the chair. “The king has invited you to dinner two days from now and General Di’Nair wishes to speak with you when you have recovered. That was my purpose for visiting you.”

“Wait,” I said, motioning for him to sit back down. He hesitated and then sat stiffly in the chair. I continued, poking my glass in his general direction. “You’re not an over-paid messenger boy. You had a purpose for visiting me today, and between discovering the princess was already here and my insults, you’ve decided to wait before asking for my support.”

Demandrope arched an eyebrow at me. “What makes you believe I want your support in anything?”

“Because you were instrumental in my summoning,” I explained. “You went through a lot of trouble to get me here. Pacts and bargains.”

His eyebrows twitched ever so slightly, a sign that my words had hit home.

“Your plans are for the greater good, right?” I prompted. “So tell me what the grand vizier needs from the champion of Nigos. What do YOU want?”

“I want to be king.”

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